Publication Procedure

Publications Procedures

For a manuscript to be an official LDEO publication, the procedures outlined below are to be followed. Following these steps in order will make the process flow smoothly. Omitting or neglecting any of these steps can result in delay.

appropriate contract(s) and grant(s)
name of funding agency and contract or grant number(s)

The name of the funding agency must be written in full
e.g. U.S. National Science Foundation, not NSF
U.S. Department of Energy, not DOE

Contracts or grants acknowledged must have legitimately supported research and/or the authors of the paper.

II. Information for the Publications Office at the Time of Submittal

At the same time a manuscript is submitted to a journal, please provide the Publications Office with materials described below.

Information to be included -

-- Names of ALL authors (Initials for first names are sufficient)
-- Complete title (Please be precise; many titles are very similar to each other)
-- Name of journal or book to which the article is being submitted

Also helpful are:
-- a copy of the covering letter

For junior staff only

LDEO reviewers. One reviewer should be a member of the senior staff
--abstract: Please note, however, that due to shortened hours of the Publications staff, abstracts will no longer be posted throughout the Observatory

Please try to provide this information when the paper is submitted.

Waiting until the manuscript is in galley proofs (or even after publication) to inform the Publications Office about the existence of a paper can cause complications and delays.

III. Contribution Numbers

The LDEO Contribution number is assigned ONLY when a paper has been accepted. Ideally the following conditions should be met.

1. Galley proofs have been received.
2. In the case where there are no proofs, the final revised manuscript has been submitted and accepted.
3. For electronic journals, official acknowledgment of acceptance is received.

Only the Publications Office can issue a contribution number. To obtain a Contribution number contact Beverly Wuerfel bev@ldeo.columbia.edu (845) 365-8729. Please do not ask for a contribution number unless you are absolutely certain the paper has been accepted.

--An electronic or hard copy of the paper must be submitted at the time of the request for a contribution number.

IV. Procedures for Ordering Page Charges and Reprints

Please contact the purchasing department with the following information:

At the time the author receives proofs, the publisher usually sends forms for page charges and reprint orders. The Publications Office will process these forms.

When the forms are received, please send the forms with the following information:

1. Contract to be charged
2. Number of reprints desired

Look over the forms carefully. Most publishers will supply information about the page charges, color costs and reprint costs, and give an estimate of the final cost. The Publications Office will calculate the total as precisely as possible at the time the requisition is written. (There may be some variation in the final cost when the paper comes out.) At the time these forms are sent to the Publications Office however, the author should be aware of the approximate cost.

Sign where (if) the author's signature is required. Not all order forms require this.

It is important to send these forms over as soon as can after you receive them. Most publishers have a limited time period (around the time the article goes into print) in which reprints can be ordered. If too long a lapse occurs after this time period, there is usually a substantial penalty fee.

Special instructions for contracts close to expiration.

If the contract or grant is close to expiration, please let us know and we will work with Contracts and Grants to try to preserve the funds necessary to pay for costs.

If reprints are being purchased on an NSF grant, it is possible to mortgage the money if a journal has accepted a manuscript even though the publication date is some months off.

Other agencies do not allow this procedure, but it is possible to get a pro forma invoice and make payment to the journal immediately where assurance has been received that a paper will be published.

Please try to make these arrangements as soon as you know they will be necessary. Bear in mind that initiating these procedures at Lamont is only the first step in a long (slow, but inexorable) process that has to go through the labyrinthine channels of Columbia's administration. Waiting until the contract is within days (or hours) of expiration is not advisable.

Note: Do NOT send corrected proofs or copyright agreement forms to the Publications Office. It is the responsibility of the author to return these forms as soon as possible to the publisher. Failure to do so can lead to delays in publishing. If the copyright agreement is on the same form as the reprint/page charge form, sign the original copyright form (leave the rest of the order form blank) and send the copyright agreement immediately to the publisher. Send a photocopy of the order form to the Publications Office, and the reprint order will be processed.

If you order reprints:

1. Indicate how many reprints you want.

2. Indicate to whom you want them delivered (i.e. to the Publications Office or the author).

If the reprints are delivered to the Publications Office, the distribution will be handled by the Publications Office.

If you want the reprints delivered directly to you and you wish to handle the distribution yourself please provide the Publications Office with the following -

- Let the Publications Office know when the reprints arrive. They should be counted to check if the order is complete. The Publications Office needs to inform Accounts Payable when an order is received so that the publisher can be paid.

1. Inform the Publications Office immediately when the paper has been published.

2. Provide the Publications Office with at least 2 copies of the paper for archiving.

3. If a purchase order was issued for any charges (page charges, color, color separations, etc.) it is important to inform the Publications Office that the article has come out so that the invoice can be paid.